West Liberty had Wilton rattled.
From two sets and 16-11 up, the Beavers were looking at a quick end to last Thursday's regional semifinal against a big area and conference rival.
But West Liberty found some magic left in their bag. Just not enough to reach a deciding set.
Ending the match on a 14-2 run, Wilton escaped with their postseason lives, defeating West Liberty in four tight sets, 25-22, 25-21, 22-25, 25-17.
“This was a wonderful match with very good volleyball,” Wilton coach Brenda Grunder said after the match. “Big blocks, big swings. Just back and forth. At this point in the season, I appreciate good volleyball and I appreciate my team battling through that.
“(West Liberty) played us here earlier in the season. That was a huge match. I felt both teams played almost flawless volleyball. A win against them at this stage of the season is a big help for us.”
Wilton controlled the first two sets from the jump, but the endings to those sets laid the groundwork for what was to come.
In the first set, Wilton never trailed. The Beavers had leads of 4-0, 11-5, 15-9, 19-14 and 24-18.
However, it took five match points to clinch the set after one West Liberty block back winner and four Beaver errors extended the set to 24-22.
West Liberty gave Wilton a big break by hitting a service error to give the Beavers point No. 25.
At the start of set two, the two squads traded points in the early proceedings.
Wilton gained a 13-8 lead, but the Comets closed the gap and equaled the frame at 15-all.
Again, Wilton opened up another lead, this time at 21-16 and forced Comet head coach Brittney Boffeli to call a timeout.
After the break, West Liberty won four straight points, put the match at 21-20, and forced Grunder to talk it over with her team.
Wilton’s offense sealed the deal, recording a kill on each of the Beavers’ final four winning points to end the set.
The Comets took an early lead in the third set at 10-8 after a handful of kills. However, Wilton won the next six points to make the score 14-10.
Soon after, West Liberty found its range.
With four kills and Beaver unforced errors in the mix, the Comets won six points in a row and took a 21-18 lead.
It was one they did not relinquish and West Liberty forced a fourth set.
A nervous energy started to set in at Wilton High School as the Comets grabbed a 15-11 lead in the middle of the fourth set.
After the Comets won a point off of a net cord ace, Grunder called timeout.
Something needed to change and quickly for the home team. That is exactly what happened.
Wilton’s offense fueled a monster 14-2 run to end the set and the match.
It began with a West Liberty service error. After that, the Beavers recorded six kills and one block back winner. The Comets had six unforced errors in this stretch.
Senior Kaylee Pelzer tallied 22 kills to lead all players in the match. Senior Sophie Buysse was second on the Comets with 15 kills.
Sophomore Emma Yoder contributed 42 assists and 11 digs.
In total, five Comets reached double-digit digs including senior Gabriella Morales (29), Buysse (15), sophomore Tenley Nixt (14) and Pelzer (10).
West Liberty suffered mightily behind the service line, recording 12 errors in 85 attempts for a .859 serve efficiency rate. This was well below their season service efficiency rate of .917.
The match bumped Wilton’s season record to 32-7. The Beavers traveled to Mid-Prairie on Tuesday, guaranteeing River Valley Conference representation at this year's state volleyball tournament.
West Liberty ends its season at 26-16. Its .619 win rate is the team’s lowest since 2017.
One final home win
The Comets did not exit the postseason winless as the team took care of business at home in the regional quarterfinals.
Last Tuesday (Oct. 22), West Liberty swept Central Lee 25-22, 25-19, 25-17 to advance to face Wilton in the regional semifinals.
Pelzer (15 kills) and Buysse (13 kills) combined for 18 of their team’s 36 putaways. Yoder assisted on 32 points.
Nixt led with 14 digs while Pelzer and junior Mallory Wulf each recorded two blocks.
Sophomore Madi Buysse led the Comets with two aces.